


Exceeding Expectations

by elfsbe



Category: Fairy Tail
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-01
Updated: 2016-03-01
Packaged: 2018-05-24 05:16:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,093
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6142666
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elfsbe/pseuds/elfsbe
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>headcanon: lucy had a crush on “salamander” based on articles she read in sorcery weekly alone and the image she had of him in her head was completely different from what natsu actually was but that didn’t mean her idea was better than the real deal</p><p>(i posted this on tumblr and i just had to write it sorry)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Exceeding Expectations

Okay, so he wasn’t everything she’d ever imagined.

He wasn’t polite or well-mannered. He wasn’t quiet or mysterious; nor was he sensitive and brooding. He was hotheaded, loud, cocky, and dense to the point she was surprised that he even had — at the very least — two brain cells to rub together. He had no respect for anyone’s privacy; he seemed to be completely oblivious to the fact that she was a girl and he was a boy. There are some things that males and females do not do unless they have that sort of relationship. But, then again, he’d always expressed immunity to her feminine wiles so he was most likely unaware of the boundaries separating their sexes. This also meant he likely had no intention of sweeping her off her feet with bold declarations of love and loyalty the moment they met eyes for the first time.

_Yeah, he’s a completely different person compared to the one in my head._

Of course, could you really blame her for idealizing him when all she’d had were stories told through external forces? She was a _writer_ , for crying out loud. If she didn’t possess such a fertile imagination, she wouldn’t be able to create immersive plot lines, heart-shattering twists, and captivating heroes that won the hearts of her readers (or the readers she could have if she actually finished a novel and let it see the light of day).

Before joining Fairy Tail, Lucy lived her life vicariously through recounts published in Sorcery Weekly, chronicling the exciting adventures of Fiore’s most popular wizards. Her favorite articles were the ones involving Fairy Tail as they always seemed to have the most outlandish escapades out of all the guilds in Fiore.

Many members had been interviewed but a handful managed to escape having any photographs taken much to the chagrin of Lucy and, probably, other dedicated readers. The Celestial Spirit mage had always liked having a visual reference so that she could immerse herself in the recount without having to invent new faces.

Despite being the focus of most of Sorcery Weekly’s recounts, Salamander of Fairy Tail had never actually been featured in the popular magazine. Lucy had no pictures for reference and couldn’t draw any accurate conclusions about the elusive wizard’s personality. So, she made him up based on his actions in the articles she’d read about him.

To Lucy, Salamander was one of the most powerful wizards in Fairy Tail due to his tendency to constantly destroy things when he went on jobs. She imagined him to be polite, apologizing to the client for all the damage. However, due to his handsome face and charisma, he was almost always pardoned. Nobody could resist his charms.

With each article she read about him, Lucy became increasingly infatuated with Salamander of Fairy Tail. She would daydream about running into him during her travels. Lucy reckoned their gazes would lock and, like magnets, the two would be drawn to each other. He would invite her to join Fairy Tail to help her finally realize her dream of becoming a powerful wizard and pine after her shamelessly. Eventually, the Celestial wizard would give into his romantic advances and the rest would be history.

It was these fantasies that kept Lucy from feeling the weight of the world at night. They kept her hopeful that someday all of her dreams would come true. That’s what Fairy Tail represented to her before she joined and that’s what it would continue to represent long after

But, although Fairy Tail’s meaning would remain the same, Salamander’s meaning would not.

In fact, though she’d never admit it, he would make a greater impact on Lucy’s life. However, not in the fashion that she had envisioned for so long; no, it was far better than whatever she could dream up.

Bora initially resembled the idea Lucy had about the Salamander in her head. She had no trouble believing he was the real deal. But, the moment Natsu Dragneel came barreling in through the crowd of awestruck girls, Lucy’s attention had been drawn to that shock of pink hair and the magic that held her in awe had completely fallen away. She watched how this newcomer treated the famed “Salamander” and felt that his treatment of the jerk that she’d been pining for all this time was fully deserved.

Lucy’s idea of Salamander was almost entirely crushed at this point but she wasn’t as devastated as she thought she’d be. Maybe it was because she realized he was an absolute creep or maybe, somehow, she was subconsciously aware of Bora’s farce. At the time, she was convinced it was the former.

After Bora’s departure, Lucy felt compelled to approach that pink haired boy who forced her to see through the Charm Magic and inadvertently avenged her. Thanking and feeding him was the least she could do, especially since now she was no longer holding out for the figment of her imagination who was an actual creep in reality. She would continue on; Lucy had much to accomplish so there was no point in dwelling over the destruction of her Salamander.

But these were recent events still fresh in her mind. There was a part of Lucy that hoped, somehow, Salamander of Fairy Tail would still be her way into the guild she admired so deeply. It was this sliver of hope that led her to accept “Salamander’s” offer and attend the party on his boat that night despite her better judgement.

In the moment, despite “Salamander’s” skin-crawling advances, Lucy had allowed her hopes up. Her daydreams were on the verge of becoming a reality! Was she actually this close to Fairy Tail? Sure, it wasn’t happening the way she’d hoped but it was getting there, wasn’t it? If she could simply suffer through this party, she’d be on the right path. Sacrifices were to be made to accomplish goals; she could sacrifice her comfort for her dreams, couldn’t she?

“What are you doing?” she had asked, smacking away the sleeping draught “Salamander” had attempted to administer.

There it was once again…

The crushing blow of reality hitting her over the head repeatedly. Lucy couldn’t believe that the wizard she’d dreamed about for such a long time could use magic for such vile purposes. She couldn’t believe that this man could ever be associated with the wizards she’d looked up to. If he was one of them, what were the rest of them like?

How stupid was she?

What part of her thought falling in love with the idea of a man had been a smart thing to do? “Salamander” tossing her Keys into the ocean seemed to cruelly represent her dreams being tossed away. Her hopes were being shattered, one by one, while the threat of slavery loomed dangerously overhead.

Suddenly, the roof of the boat caved in, tears falling from Lucy’s eyes as she wondered for a moment if her shattering dreams were somehow manifested into the real world. But, instead, the blonde mage spotted a familiar head of pink hair. Her smile was involuntary as that treacherous glimmer of hope returned to her.

“Hey,” Lucy announced, wiping away her tears. “I know you!”

He was odd and totally lame as he suffered from the movement of the boat, threatening to blow chunks all over the floor. But he consistently did something for Lucy that nobody else had; he filled her with hope without even trying to and in a way where she wasn’t even conscious of it.

The whole event was like an adventure straight out of Sorcery Weekly’s recounts. Lucy could hardly believe how everything unfolded around her. It was odd because, although she was right in the heart of the events, she felt like a fly on the wall. Lucy half expected to wake up in an inn with Sorcery Weekly’s newest issue folded over her stomach because she’d fallen asleep reading again.

And then, came the moment where she actually had to pinch herself to ensure that this was reality and that she, Lucy Heartfilia, was not dreaming about a pink haired boy and his talking blue cat…

Natsu Dragneel was a Fairy Tail wizard.

A full-fledged, bonafide Fairy Tail wizard (A.K.A. the Real FUCKING Deal).

Lucy’s heart was beating a mile a minute as she watched him approach the Slave Trader dangerously, defending his guild’s honor. She was captivated by his strength and resolve; his well-defined muscles rippling underneath exposed tan flesh. But her racing heart stopped suddenly when she thought he’d been hit.

Acting on some odd instinct, Lucy called out his name and felt the sudden urge to run to him, to make sure that he was okay. But Happy stopped her in her tracks, forcing the blonde mage to watch on in wonder. It seemed that her brown eyes were growing wider by the second as the events unfolded rapidly. Lucy had to ask herself if this was all really happening once again when the ultimate revelation struck her…

Not only was Natsu a Fairy Tail wizard: he was _the_ Salamander.

_He’s…this guy is…_

Natsu was the Salamander she’d based her daydreams around; and that, in itself, was pretty embarrassing as he was nothing like the man she’d envisioned. So, a blush coated her cheeks involuntarily as she watched Natsu move in battle and — there it was again — an ember of hope reignited within her, burning brighter than the flames the pinkette wielded against his imposter.

Then, the end to that fateful incident came…

“Oh, wow, that was amazing!” Lucy exclaimed, her mouth hanging open as she looked upon the destruction Natsu had caused. “But he overdid it!”

“Aye!” replied an enthusiastic Happy.

“Oh, shut it, cat!”

…And the rest of her life, unbeknownst to Lucy, began.

The sound of footsteps was rapidly approaching the trio. Lucy immediately identified the presence of the army but, before she could gawk for too long, a strong hand circled around her wrist unceremoniously. Natsu Dragneel — _the_ Salamander — was dragging her along after him!

“Holy crap!” he cried, his grip warming Lucy’s skin. “We gotta get outta here!”

“Where are you taking me?!”

Lucy glanced up at Natsu for answers, still held in his grasp as she ran along beside him. She wasn’t watching the pinkette battle anymore but her heart was still racing, threatening to pop out of her chest. The Dragon Slayer’s gaze as he looked back at her only made the rapid fluttering worse (although, Lucy would argue her reaction was due to running away from the army).

“You said you wanted to join Fairy Tail, right?” he reiterated before his face broke out into the most infectious grin. “So, let’s go!”

It was as if he’d transferred another flame of hope through their connected skin. Lucy felt the excitement swell up in her very bones as her own face erupted into a smile, a light sheen of pink coating her cheeks as she took in the reality of the situation.

 _The_ Salamander was taking her with him to join Fairy Tail!

It was everything she could have ever hoped for. She’d been dreaming about his very thing happening for so long and now it was actually — finally — happening. Lucy was going to become a Fairy Tail wizard!

The blonde mage pulled herself free of the pinkette’s grip. “Alright!” Lucy exclaimed, running after Natsu and Happy with a renewed sense of purpose.

So, Natsu didn’t resemble the Salamander she’d imagined.

The one thing they shared was strength but ‘strong’ was an understatement when describing the Dragon Slayer. He was a total powerhouse in spirit and body. Nothing seemed to faze or scare him; he faced challenges head on. Natsu’s vigor could sometimes get on Lucy’s nerves when misdirected but that didn’t mean she didn’t fully appreciate it. He was insanely loyal and wanted to protect the people he cared about most. It wasn’t hard to figure out how he was feeling because he wore his heart on his sleeve. His smile always lifted the Celestial wizard’s spirits and filled everyone around him with hope. Natsu’s passion burned brighter than any flame; his magic certainly fit his personality.

Sometimes, Lucy allowed herself to believe that Natsu was far better than the man of her imagination; then she would find him sifting through her refrigerator again and, all of a sudden, the thought would retreat from the annoyance taking it’s place.

But it was always there and would return from time to time with increasing frequency.


End file.
